Am I missing something in this story? Why has the mom been told to pump
after each nsg? If the babies are home & nsg well, & gaining, why on earth
should this poor soul have to pump too? Was she started on this regimen
"just to be sure" that the babies were getting enough, or "just to be sure"
her breasts were getting enough stim to ensure adequate supply? Doesn't
sound like that's a problem at this point...If babies are doing well at
breast, all this monkeying around with the contraption is the last thing she
needs. Sounds like one of those things moms are told to do, maybe initially
for a good reason, but nobody tells them when to stop, so they just keep on
doing it. Used to see this all the time at WIC - a mom would be told to
supplement after fdgs (often legit enough at the time it's suggested), but
not told what criteria to watch for to know when/how to eliminate this step.
So they'd keep doing it, because the doctor, nurse, "WIC lady", whoever told
her to, but no one had explained (or she hadn't taken in) the part that says
"until he's taking less than 1 oz after most feedings" or "until we do a
weight check in 2 days" or whatever is appropriate.

Re: the high suction - if it hurts, she shouldn't use it. Period. Lots of
moms do use it on high, all the time, with no problems, but since it's
hurting her something isn't right there. Maybe you could empower her to
check with whoever gave these pumping "instructions" & see if there's a
reason to continue.
Cathy Bargar RN, IBCLC